True Faith
True Faith is a power held by the truly devout. With True Faith, for example, a brandished cross can have an effect on a vampire, fallen, mage, werewolf, wraith or changeling instead of being merely an empty symbol of the creed. Faith can come from many different beliefs, such as Christianity, Islam, or Judaism, and even virtuous pagans can resist the lure of darkness if their faith is true. Overview This characteristic is not necessarily increased through experience. Certainly, it may arise as a result of a person’s experience, but it is more vital than that, more a measure of conviction and strength of mind. Nor is it necessarily something that comes from outside the individual, from some God or angel. Whether or not their beliefs are correct, these people believe so unwaveringly that their own conviction protects them. Other beings might develop True Faith based on forces that hold a special relation to the believer. A Mokolé might develop True Faith in the Sun. Some Mages however, theorize that True Faith is really something that may have an external source, which is Channeled by will, the nature of such a source varying for each faithful. According to this theory, although a Celestial Chorister and a Nephandi may both have Faith, the source from which they channel would be distinct. True Faith ratings In Vampire: the Masquerade, the Faith Trait has a rating of 1 to 5. Exactly what protection is afforded to the individual by the Trait depends on this rating, as described below. In theory, a mortal might have a Faith rating of greater than 5, but these people are one in a billion – the sort of people who are venerated as saints. They are unlikely to enter a chronicle, but their powers would be enormous. Standard Abilities * ** Any character with Faith may attempt to ward off vampires by brandishing a holy symbol or uttering prayers. The person rolls Faith against a difficulty equal to the vampire's current Willpower points. The number of successes indicates the number of steps backward the vampire is forced to take. If no successes are scored, the vampire need not step back but may not advance. A botch indicates that the vampire may advance unhindered. Further, if the cross, Bible, or other holy symbol is placed against the vampire's body, each success causes an aggravated health level of damage, burning into the flesh. * ** A mortal with a Faith rating of 2 or more may resist Dominate and similar vampiric mind-control powers by spending Willpower (one point protects for a few turns). * ** A person with a Faith of 3 or more may be able to sense the presence of a vampire, and can purchase the Awareness Skill. They need not consciously try to sense a vampire's presence, but must be in peaceful, quiet surroundings – perhaps alone in thought, praying, reading the Torah, meditating on the Bible, etc. The person will not sense the vampire's presence if they are preoccupied (e.g., arguing) or in a crowded, noisy place (jostled by a mob, in the midst of a raucous banquet, etc.). This ability is not infallible; the Storyteller should let the person sense the vampire only when it is dramatically convenient, or only after a successful Awareness roll. Note that the person cannot know exactly what they sense through their Faith; all that they will know is that something unclean or evil is nearby. * ** The mortal may not be turned into a ghoul, and is immune to any mind-altering Disciplines such as Dominate, Presence, and Obfuscate. * ** The person is so pure, so holy, that they can fill a vampire with self-loathing, disgust, terror, and even physical pain. Any vampire hearing the person pray, preach, or recite psalms, or who is touched by the faithful, may be forced to flee immediately. A vampire who is unable to flee is reduced to a gibbering wreck, flailing on the floor and screaming, sobbing, or begging forgiveness. To avoid fleeing, the vampire must either expend one Willpower point per turn or make a Stamina roll each turn (difficulty of 5 + their own Intelligence) – the higher the vampire's Intelligence, the higher the difficulty, as the more tortured and guilty they feel. In Mage: the Ascension, characters with True Faith can perform these miracles, or other equivalent ones by spending a "true faith" point. * Countermagic based on True Faith rating * Convictions: Use a True Faith point instead of a Willpower point * Ward of demons and vampires * Acceptance: By recognizing the oneness of faith you can ignore the effects of one True Faith miracle someone else performed * Faith healing based on True Faith rating. Can cure both damage and diseases, and at really high level even bring back the dead * Transmutation: Water to wine, or poison to water. No roll required * Mental resistance: Add Faith to Willpower for resisting mental assault. You might become immune to supernatural coercion at certain levels of Faith * Holy shielding: Add Faith to soak * Visions: You gain a vision or prophecy * Intercession: You intercede with the Powers That Be, to lift a curse or to stay death * Penance: True Faith vs Willpower. If you win the target is overcome with remorse, or, if they are truly evil, with thoughts of suicide and recklessness Remember that Faith represents a person's total commitment to their beliefs. That person will act accordingly. Those with high Faith ratings may seem fanatical, even insane to those not of their religion. Miracles The strongest tool in the hands of the Faithful (Inquisitors and other members of the Society of Leopold usually) is the power of Miracle. Miracle can be performed if a character has a minimum Faith rating of six. Note that very few members of the Society of Leopold can perform miracles, so it is considered very spectacular and rare. * ** Sanctify an area (Increases rage roll of 1, reaction rolls are reduced by one) ** Feel God's faith in you, improving Willpower by 1 point ** Banish a demon or summoned spirit * ** Cause a creature with murderous intent (mortal, vampire, werewolf) to be overcome by guilt. ** Provide countermagick against any mage magick use, whether directed at the Faithful or not ** Cure a serious disease. ** Bless a religious icon to damage supernatural beings (even mages). Works even if the bearer is not a Faithful, but must be a believer in the given faith (or religion). Will do 1 level of damage for every willpower point spend during the blessing. ** Expel a Wraith skinriding a mortal, breaking any Consort. ** Bring a Werewolf out of frenzy. * ** Conversion: Temporarily or permanently change someone's nature (Charisma + Empathy diff target's Willpower. (1 success = 1 day, 2 = 1 week, 3 = 1 month, 4 = a year, 5 = permanent. ** Reduce a Vampiric discipline by one per success on a Faith roll (last during the scene) * ** Exorcise demons and evil spirit without the recourse of ritual : Faith roll vs target's Willpower. Bye bye Fallen. ** The targeted Wraith reaches Transcendence ** Permanently mark an area of tranquility (see level 6) ** Make yourself invulnerable to any action or power from supernatural evil, or whatever that may cause you harm from supernatural entities. You have to remain passive and concentrate. No violent action allowed. Works on your allies as long as they are not aggressive. ** Cause an evil creature to realize it truly deserves death. Target's Humanity cannot be more than 2 and must be truly guilty of atrocities. Five successes on a Faith roll are required. If successful, the creature will remorsefully commit suicide or submit to execution (must be as painless as possible and humane). * ** Ignore a source of damage. Faith roll diff 9, at least 5 rounds spent in preparation. each success remove 2 dice of damage. ** Heal all wound levels in a mortal ** Cure blindness, deafness, mortal disease ** Cleanse someone from the Embrace! The target must want it and have gone through a significant and dramatic story. Faith roll diff 10, and the vampire becomes a mortal or alternatively, achieve Golconda. ** Call the minion of the Divine to help you. Result may vary, but do not expect actual angels. It calls living creatures in your area. Effects True Faith is a special Trait that only a few people in the World of Darkness possess. While many mortals are more or less devoted to a belief in some form of higher being or purpose, only a small number have the burning zeal, the profound conviction that can protect them against supernatural creatures like vampires. Mortals Mortals with True Faith are sometimes, but not necessarily, Hunters (not necessarily the Imbued hunters of Hunter: The Reckoning or the Shih, the demon hunters of Asia). It also allows an individual to use a number of miracles. Members of the Society of Leopold (the modern face of the Inquisition) are so well trained in using True Faith as a weapon that some of them can destroy nearly any supernatural entity they encounter. Vampires As unholy creatures and abominations in the eyes of God, True Faith has been known to repel, stun, and even injure vampires. If someone with True Faith, such as a priest, were to touch a vampire's flesh, the vampire would recoil in pain as the touch would scorch their cursed skin. There is actually one easy way for a vampire to detect a person with a Faith rating, other than bitter experience — the use of Aura Perception can find it. A mortal with Faith has their aura permanently altered so that they have a silver or gold “halo” around their body. The strength of the Faith determines the brightness of the halo. Some very rare Kindred have True Faith. It is the case of María Asunción, Cardinal Ambrosio Luis Monçada, Anatole, Ferox and a few Nosferatu. Werewolves True Faith forces werewolves to revert to human form. It also lower the power of Rage, calming down the werewolf increasing the difficulty to use Rage based abilities. The Garou Garret Faithful have True Faith in Gaia (cWOD). Mages True Faith disrupts magical attacks. Wraiths Wraiths are so susceptible to it that even a person without True Faith can exorcise them out of a person or a place and ward the area against further entry. Demons True Faith is far different from the Faith that fuels demonic powers. Demonic Faith is the self-assurance and insight that a demon has within itself as well as the devotion and belief of its followers. True Faith is Faith that is directed towards God and against the Fallen. True Faith has double its normal effect on infernal powers. A character with True Faith can inflict one die of aggravated damage for every point of True Faith he or she possesses. Demons with moderate- or high-Torment are affected by True Faith much in the same way as vampires; they cannot set foot on holy ground, are repelled by holy symbols, and are susceptible to exorcism. Demons with low-Torment are immune to True Faith; able to enter holy ground and touch holy items without harm. References * * * * * * * WTA: Mokolé p. 75, 84 Category:World of Darkness glossary